How to get here

Update on accommodation:

The camp house is closed for the time being, but people are most welcome keep visiting and staying in the area to support the campaign. There’s been a steady flow of people coming to stay short and medium term at the house over the winter, but we don’t have the enough long-term people at the moment to facilitate the open ended accommodation as we have until now. This could change in the future, but it would take commitment from enough people to organise it and make it happen. If you are interested in getting involved in the camp email us – rossportsolidaritycamp@gmail.com

There are still plenty local accommodation options:

Fritz & Betty’s Hostel: Kilcommon Lodge, Pullathomas (+353) (0)97 846 21 info@kilcommonlodge.ie

Mc Grath’s B&B, Pullathomas- 097 84626

There are also a number of locals who have offered to host visitors/ have a place to pitch a tent but it may not always be possible to arrange this.

If you don’t know people well enough here to arrange you’re own stay with them, email rossportsolidaritycamp@gmail.com in advance of your visit to see if we can organise a place to stay. The set up would obviously be different to the camp house – please remember that this would be someones home and it’s a really busy time of year with farming so be independent. You can easily hitch lifts to Belmullet to buy food and although its packed away now, some of the resources of the camp would be available. It would be important to offer to help out with any jobs in-exchange for your stay if it can be arranged.

Also, contact the camp in advance to see if there are any lifts avaliable /people who need lifts. We can often help with places to stay on route (eg. in Dublin/Castlebar).
Here you can find camp on google maps (sorry about using google)

By Public Transport: Get a train or bus to Ballina or Castlebar. See: http://www.buseireann.ie for buses and http://www.irishrail.ie/for trains. From those places you can get transport from a private bus company called McGraths (097) 87842 http://www.mcgrathcoaches.com. Get to the bus stop early to look out for a McGraths minibus and flag it down! Ballina- Minibus leaves at 5.10pm from outside Dunnes Stores, that is, from the carpark beside the Humbert Monument (15-20min walk from bus and train station). If you are coming from Castlebar- Minibus leaves from 5pm from beside the drop off point for the Bus Eireann buses. McGraths do not run on Sundays (return from graveyard 10.30 a.m. Monday to Saturday, 10 euro return, 8 euro single). Ask the bus driver to drop you off at your required stop.
Hitching: You will find general information on hitching out of Dublin on Hitchwiki, generally you’re best off getting to Ballina in the first place. From Ballina it’s easier to get a lift on the N59 from Ballina to Belmullet, but the scenic coast road ( ‘Killala’ then ‘Pollathomas’) is much nicer. Many of us find hitching to camp from Dublin takes about 6 hours, from Galway about 3 hours.

By bike or car: From Ballina (50km): Take the N59, the road going to Belmullet. The first town you meet is Crossmolina. Continue on the N59, travelling in the direction of the village of Bangor Erris. Go through Bangor Erris until you see the Marian grotto at the Y-juncton. (On your left is Srahmore, this is the site Shell use to dump the peat during construction work.) Turn right at the grotto and go up the ‘oil road’ (because it was widened for Shell). At the end of this road you come to a T-junction, turn right (direction Ballycastle) and you’re on the Ballinaboy road, where the refinery is. Take the first left, just before coillte forest, this takes you past Gate 2 of refinery site. After a few kms you come to a junction where you turn left. If you want to go to the camp house, keep going. Drive straight through Pollathomas village. The Kilcommon Lodge hostel is on your left before the graveyard & McGraths B&B is just after it on the left hand side aswell.

The Coast Route has amazing views and is roughly the same distance but the head wind is strong on bad days! Take the R314 north out of Ballina in the direction of Killala, after Killala you come to the village of Ballycastle and then the hamlet of Belderg. You then go through the village of Glenamoy, you pass the right turn for Rossport and continue till you see a right turn for ‘Poll a tSomais’ (Pollathomas).

How to get from Britain to the camp:

1. Just go to any train station & ask for a rail and sail ticket. Fares start at £26, no need to book in advance.http://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferry/rail-and-sail/dun-laoghaire. Or check out coach from London-Dublin http://www.eurolines.co.uk/coach/index.aspx

It might be possible to offer you accommodation in Dublin-contact the camp.

2. Dublin to Ballina http://www.buseireann.ie/pdf/1233309217-22.pdf Cheaper if you book ticket online.

3. Ballina to the camphouse, Barr na Coille (about 50 km) McGraths Minibus leaves at 5.10pm from car park outside Dunnes Stores (15-20min walk from bus and train station) and drops you by the camp. On Fridays, the 17.30pm takes you to Belmullet which is about 10 miles from the camp. You can bring bikes on the train for free or by coach (may be a charge).

How to get from Scotland to the camp:

1. A Rail & Sail ticket gets you to Belfast via the Stranraer ferry. When travelling from Scotland to the camp it is likely that you will need to spend one night in either Belfast or Dublin. It shouldn’t be a problem for crashspace to be arranged in either place, contact the camp on (0035) 3851141170 and we can try to organise this. As of July 2011 the ferry departure times are:

Bel-Stra: 7.30, 11.30, 17.00 daily

Stra-Bel: 11.45, 14.15, 19.40 daily (except  Saturday-Sunday nightferry replaces the 11.45 Sunday morning ferry)

Rail & Sail tickets are very reasonably priced. For example an Edinburgh-Belfast open return costs 54 pounds (36 pounds with railcard)

Once in Belfast there are two options:

A) Bus Eirann from the Europa Bus Station to Ballina. There are up to 2 changes en route to Ballina but it’s covered with one ticket. It costs 45 Euros / 36 pounds for an open return valid for one month. The departure-arrival times in each direction are:

Belfast to Ballina: 10.05-16.25

Ballina-Belfast: 10.00-15.40

                             12.45-19.40

These times are all Mon-Sat, nothing on Sunday

B) Train to Dublin then to Ballina (Westport train changing at Manulla junction) once at Ballina
usually doesn’t tie in with the one bus a day to camp so you can hitch to camp.
(it’s approx. 1hour drive)

For directions from Ballina to the camp see “How to get from Britain to the Camp” section 3.

2. Train down to Hollyhead cross to Dublin then get the train to Ballina
Or hitch!
Sail and rail just for crossing no train on Irish side around £25 or
£18.50 with young persons card
Sail and rail all the way around £50
Bus from Belfast to Ballina around £30
See
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/
http://www.buseireann.ie/

From further afield

Please try to avoid flying if possible. Check out http://www.seat61.com for travel options from Europe and beyond.